Prana Yoga Blog

Yoga Saved My Life: My Journey From Worrier To Warrior

A year ago today I went blind. Nine days after the birth of my daughter, my brain began to bleed and I awoke in the Intensive Care Unit-I had suffered a stroke. My left side function had been compromised, my vision was blurred, and the hope of being home for my brand new baby was shattered. Before the bleed I was a healthy and happy 34-year-old woman, after the bleed I became someone I could not even recognize.

After two weeks my vision slowly returned, the swelling in my brain had not disappeared; but diminished, and I was released to go home and attempt to resume a new kind of normal as a Stroke Survivor. I was sent home on seven different medications; Anti-Seizure, Anti-Nausea, Pain Medicine, Blood Pressure Medicine, Migraine Medicine, Anti-Anxiety, and Anti-Depressant. I could barely walk to the end of the driveway, I could not sleep, eat, smile, or enjoy the new life I created after almost losing mine. A few weeks passed and my partner returned to work. Being home alone I was then blasted with the aftershocks of trauma. PTSD, Anxiety, and Post-Partum Depression crept in as I struggled to make up for lost time as a mother. I could not leave the house, get through a store without panic, go a day without crying, or properly take care of myself and my children.